A young fan waits patiently for the start of Thursday's Victoria Justice concert in Costa Mesa. ROSE PALMISANO, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

1 of 33

Isabella, left, and her cousin Sadie were accompanied by their aunt, Lisa, and uncle, Matthew for the Victoria Justice concert at Pacific Amphitheatre Thursday night. ROSE PALMISANO, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

1 of 33

Melissa Vecchio is all smiles before Thursday's Victoria Justice concert in Costa Mesa. ROSE PALMISANO, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Pacific Amphitheatre served as a 10-year-old’s paradise Thursday night as Nickelodeon star Victoria Justice took her triple-threat act from the network’s Victorious show to a past-capacity audience that filled the seats and spilled upwards, canvassing the lawn.

Besides fulfilling the quintessential singer-dancer-actor Disney/Nick starring role, Justice is also a knockout beauty with a warm heart and good head on her shoulders. The 19-year-old certainly seemed at home and in touch with her audience, peppering her set with inspirational pep talks for young fans, whose arms waved glow sticks and touted a sea of adulatory posters all evening long.

Justice’s 12-song performance was preceded by a glimpse of her coming film Fun Size, opening Oct. 26. The singer then appeared in silhouette from within a white canvas square – and the crowd went wiiiild! As that scrim dropped, her familiar refrain (“here I am ... once again”) from her show's “Make It Shine” theme song was completely eclipsed by mind-numbing screams from idolizing kids, many of whom were likely reveling in their first concert experience.

In black-and-white striped leggings, a sparkly neon top and black blazer, Justice exulted cheerleader-like zeal as she greeted fans, almost getting pulled into the pit by an overexcited preteen. “Not quite yet, we have a few more songs to do,” she laughed, in her first of many interactions with the crowd.

After singing “Begging on Your Knees,” the alto infused her new song “Faster Than Boys” with pouty, dramatic pivots before segueing into the first of four covers, leading with the jumped-up Amy Winehouse & Mark Ronson rendition of the Zutons' “Valerie.” While the younger audience seemed unsure of the words to that one, their chaperones no doubt found interesting this glimpse at one of Justice’s musical inspirations.

After a humorous revelation about her strange obsession with mustaches – a fact demonstrated, via magic marker, by some über-loyal fans – Justice offered a genuine shout-out to her favorite audience member: her mom. Turns out she was sitting in the row right in front of me, along with a crew of the singer’s best buds. Mom received a dedicatory ballad for her lifelong support with “You’re the Reason” before Justice encouraged the crowd to give their all to their individual endeavors with “All I Want Is Everything.”

While Justice slipped away to change, the night's devotees were privy to the first showing of the music video for her new song “Girl Up,” co-written by German hit-maker Toby Gad (best known for penning Fergie's "Big Girls Don't Cry"), who was also in attendance.

Teamed with United Nations Foundation, the Justice-endorsed nonprofit group Girl Up strives to give girls in Third World countries the same opportunities for healthcare and education that we enjoy here. The video brought Lakewood fan Bella Flores, 6, to tears. Inspired by the foundation’s message, she visited the Girl Up booth post-show with her mother and friends to join the cause.

Justice, now in purple jeans and a black sequined top and fringe vest, reappeared with opening act Max Schneider to perform a Bruno Mars medley, followed by a witty exchange with her audience, who she acknowledged must have a crush on the How to Rock and Rags star.

“Max and Costa Mesa girls sitting in a tree ...,” she teased, letting her pint-sized compatriots spell the rest. The charming Schneider had indeed made the mostly girly-girl audience swoon earlier with a six-song set laden with good energy and impressive skills from his young band – in particular, his 18-year-old keyboardist “Spicy” Brown, who happily congregated with fans post-set.

Another hybrid artist with a Nickelodeon pedigree, Schneider, 20, pulled from a deeper emotional well with his original song “Quicksand.” There’s a nice tone to his raspy voice, better demonstrated in his melodic runs than the spoken-sung rapping to which he frequently gravitates. But Schneider certainly has a wraparound line of screaming girls to bolster his musical journey, as evidenced by the manic throng waiting to meet him at the merchandise table.

After Schneider's recall to the stage, Justice returned to girl power with her two female keyboardists and backup singers for her anti-creepy-boy tune “Take a Hint.” Making a fan’s dream come true by hijacking her camera and hitting play, Justice then indulged a cover of Coldplay’s “Viva la Vida,” after which a surprisingly large number of moms proved they had eavesdropped on Victorious from the kitchen sink as they sang along to her hit “Best Friend’s Brother,” while beach balls launched overhead.

Before her two-tune encore, Justice introduced the last number of her set, “Make It in America” (also the name of her tour), by sharing the story of her own childhood move from Hollywood, Fla., her hometown, to Hollywood, Calif. – where, with her parents’ support, her aspirations of stardom became a reality. With her TV (and soon movie) career blossoming, and an astounding turnout of kids hoarse from cheering her on, Justice proved she's one to watch. She is that refreshingly principled young artist who knows her audience and fulfills their need for positive role models. As her fans grow, it seems promising that her career will mature right along with them.

User Agreement

Keep it civil and stay on topic. No profanity, vulgarity, racial
slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about
tragedies will be blocked. By posting your comment, you agree to
allow Orange County Register Communications, Inc. the right to
republish your name and comment in additional Register publications
without any notification or payment.